ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY: NASCIO Recognizes Illinois for Outstanding Accomplishments in IT

Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology issued the following announcement on Oct. 25.

The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) announced the state of Illinois' unemployment insurance tax modernization project as the winner for the Digital Government: Government to Business category as part of their 2018 State IT Recognition Awards.

In addition, Illinois was selected as a finalist in two other award categories including the Illinois Blockchain Initiative for Emerging & Innovative Technologies and Illinois' Security Operations Center for Cybersecurity. There were 31 finalists in 10 categories that NASCIO recognizes for outstanding achievement in State IT.

"It is an honor to be recognized on a national scale for our progress with digital modernization," said Kirk Lonbom, Illinois CIO and Acting Secretary for the Department of Innovation & Technology (DoIT). This NASCIO award demonstrates that our state's digital transformation is resulting in key improvements in the service we provide to our constituents. Additionally, the collaboration that took place between agencies to make this project a success is a testament to our enterprise direction."

The Illinois Department of Employment Security's (IDES) Unemployment Insurance Tax Modernization project replaced an outdated and paper-intensive filing process. Since the recent implementation, paper filing of quarterly wage reports was reduced from over 100,000 to less than 30,000 per quarter. Additionally, the electronic process improved the speed of filing process by 75 percent.

"I'm proud of the IDES team for undertaking this heavy lift and I appreciate all of the help from our partners in this project," said IDES Director Jeff Mays. "When you are talking about updating decades old systems and breaking down the bureaucratic government silos in the process, you are truly transforming government in a positive way that is not only better for state employees but, more importantly, better for the taxpayers and business owners."

The NASCIO State IT Recognition Awards were announced this week at NASCIO's 30th Annual Conference in San Diego. Recipients were selected from a field of more than 100 nominees from state members.